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Money laundering

Corruption and money laundering are intrinsically linked. Corruption offences, such as bribery or theft of public funds, are generally committed for the purpose of obtaining private gain. Money laundering is the process of concealing illicit gains that were generated from criminal activity. By successfully laundering the proceeds of a corruption offence, the illicit gains may be enjoyed without fear of being confiscated.

The Financial Action Task Force (FATF) is the international standard setter in the development and promotion of national and international policies to combat money laundering and terrorist financing. The recommendations published by the FATF are designed to combat money laundering and terrorist financing but, when effectively implemented, they can also help combat corruption by:

safeguarding the integrity of the public sector

protecting designated private sector institutions from abuse

increasing transparency of the financial system,

facilitating the detection, investigation and prosecution of corruption and money laundering, and the recovery of stolen assets.

A proper culture of compliance with standards of anti-money laundering creates an environment in which it is more difficult for corruption to thrive undetected and unpunished.

The OECD’s work on tax crime and money laundering is designed to complement that carried out by FATF. This work is being pursued in a variety of ways including typologies exercises, developing practical guidance on detection of money laundering for tax auditors, examining key risk areas and reviewing current country practices for sharing information between tax and anti-money laundering authorities.